KR20200003137A - Apparatus and method for handling articles for automatic and manual sorting of items using dynamically configurable sorting arrays - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided for classifying items into a plurality of classification destinations. The scanning station evaluates one or more characteristics of each item supplied to the device. The item is loaded onto one of a plurality of independently controlled delivery vehicles. The delivery vehicle is individually driven to the sorting destination. Once the appropriate sorting destination is reached, the delivery vehicle discharges the item to the sorting destination and returns to accept other items to be delivered. A reinduction conveyor may be provided for receiving the selected item from the vehicle and for transporting the item back to the input station for reprocessing. In addition, a controller is provided for controlling the movement of the vehicle based on the characteristics of each item being delivered by each vehicle. If an item to be sorted manually appears, a visual alert is activated that aligns with the selected destination until manual transport is confirmed.

Description

Apparatus and method for handling articles for automatic and manual sorting of items using dynamically configurable sorting arrays

Reference to related application

This application is a partial continuing application that claims priority to International Patent Application No. PCT / US17 / 30930, filed May 3, 2017. The entire disclosure of the foregoing applications is incorporated herein by reference.

Field of invention

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a material handling system, and more particularly, to a system and method for grouping items into groups based on automated recognition, detection, and / or characterization processes.

The inventors of the present application may find it difficult to aggregate items into each group (eg, in the fulfillment of a corresponding order item to be delivered to a customer or retail point of sale and / or in the processing of a return of such item) and time consuming. It has been observed that it may be, may be inefficient, and error prone. Such a disadvantage is felt most severely when it is necessary to retrieve (or return an item there) from scattered locations in a warehouse or other large facility. A single order fulfillment center may receive hundreds, thousands, or more orders per day, with each order requiring one, several, or many different items to be withdrawn from inventory. do. The retrieved item is typically transported by hand to a parcel or box. In this way, after all the items for the order have accumulated, the packaging process is complete.

Automated sorting systems and methods in which items of a completely different size and / or weight are conveyed to an array of automatically identified and dynamically reconfigurable sort destinations based on identification. sorting system and method) are described herein.

According to one aspect, a method of classifying items into a dynamically reconfigurable sort array structure (DRSRS) is provided. The method may include executing instructions stored in a memory for activating a visual alert aligned with a first sorted destination of the DRSAS when a first item to be transferred manually is detected. The instructions stored in the memory are executed to turn off the visual alert after the first item has been manually transferred to the first sorting destination. The second item to be automatically delivered to the first sorting destination is received as a delivery vehicle, which is advanced along the path to the first sorting destination in response to a command from the controller. The second item may then be transferred to the first sorting destination. The method may optionally include one or more optional steps, including actuating at least one sensor of the delivery vehicle to detect that the first classification destination cannot accept the second item. step; Sending, from the delivery vehicle, a notification to the controller that the first classification destination cannot accept the second item; Operating the scanner to obtain an identifying indicium from at least one surface of the first item or the second item; Transmitting from the scanner to the controller data indicative of the identification indication associated with the first item; Transmitting, from the scanner to the controller of the warehouse management system, data indicative of the identification mark associated with the first item, wherein instructions stored in the memory for selectively activating a visual alert are based on data transmitted from the scanner. Executed by the processor; And / or transmitting from the scanner data indicative of confirmation that the first item has been transferred to the first sorting destination, wherein instructions stored in the memory for turning off the visual alert are based on data transmitted from the scanner based on the processor. It may also comprise the step to be executed by. The method may include one or any combination of optional steps.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides a method of sorting items using a dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system. The classification array system may include a plurality of destination areas, a plurality of delivery vehicles, and an event annunciation system, which are generally arranged in a series of vertically extending columns. The method may include transferring an item to be delivered to a first destination area of the plurality of destination areas onto a delivery vehicle. The delivery vehicle may be driven along a path to the first destination area. The method may include initiating the discharge of the item to the first destination area. Upon detection of an item to be manually delivered to a second destination area of the plurality of destination areas, the method may include operating an event notification system to provide a first visible alert. Upon detection of manual delivery of the item to a second destination, the method may further include operating the event notification system to stop the first visual alert and / or provide a second visual alert that is visually distinguishable from the first visual alert. It may also include. Optionally, the method may include operating a sensor of the article handling system to confirm the release of the item to the first destination area. Additionally, providing a second visible alert may include providing a second visible alert if the last item needed to complete grouping of items in the destination area has been transferred. The method may comprise one or both of the above optional steps.

According to a further aspect, the present invention provides an article handling system for classifying a plurality of items into one or more groups of items. The system may also include a plurality of destination regions and a plurality of visible indicators, which are generally arranged in a series of vertically extending columns, wherein at least one of the plurality of visible indicators is a plurality of destinations. Adjacent to the corresponding destination area of the area. The system may also include a plurality of delivery vehicles, each delivery vehicle being dimensioned and arranged to receive each item of the plurality of items, and carrying the received item to any of the plurality of destination areas. Is operable to Each vehicle may include a power source for driving the vehicle, and a transport mechanism operative to transport the received item to the selected destination area. A controller including a processor is provided for executing instructions stored in memory. The stored instructions may include instructions for activating a first visible indicator of the plurality of visible indicators when a first item to be manually transported to the first destination area is detected; Instructions for deactivating a first visible indicator of the plurality of visible indicators when confirmation of manual transfer of the first item is detected; If the first destination region has accumulated a complete group of items, the method may include instructions for activating a second visible indicator adjacent to the first destination region. The system includes the memory including instructions executable by the processor to deactivate additional optional features, such as a second visible indicator when the complete group of items has been removed from the first destination area; The memory including instructions executable by the processor for controlling the movement and operation of each delivery vehicle; The plurality of destination areas may comprise an array of first columns generally extending vertically and a series of second columns extending vertically, wherein the system guides the delivery vehicle to the destination area. It may further comprise a track for the track, wherein the track is arranged between the series of first columns and the series of second columns so that the delivery vehicle can move vertically between the series of first columns and the series of second columns, If the vehicle is stopped at a point along the track, the transport mechanism can move the item forward between the vehicle and the destination area in the first series of columns and the transport mechanism is between the vehicle and the destination area in the second series of columns. The item can be moved backwards. The system may include one or any combination of optional features.

Although the method and apparatus are described herein by way of example for various embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will describe inventive methods and apparatus for classifying items using dynamically reconfigurable sorting arrays. It will be appreciated that it is not limited to the embodiment or the drawings. It is to be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereof are not intended to limit the embodiments to the particular forms disclosed herein. Rather, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the method and apparatus for classifying items using one or more dynamically reconfigurable classification arrays defined by the appended claims. will be. Any headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used herein, the word “may” is used in an acceptable meaning (ie, having potential) rather than in a mandatory sense (ie, meaning essential). Likewise, the words “comprises”, “comprising” and “comprising” mean including, but not limiting.

The foregoing summary and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be best understood when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
1 illustrates one or more dynamically reconfigurable sorting array systems that operate under the supervision of a centralized warehouse management system and form part of an order fulfillment arrangement, in accordance with example embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. A block diagram depicting.
2 is a block diagram depicting in more detail a warehouse management system for coordinating the operation of one or more dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system (s) consistent with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.
3 is a block diagram depicting in more detail a dynamically configurable sorting array system constructed in accordance with exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.
4A is a block depicting functional components of an example item induct module, which may form part of the dynamically configurable classification array system of FIG. 3 in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. It is also.
4B is a top plan view depicting components of the example item derivation module of FIG. 4A, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
4C is dimensioned and arranged to obtain an image of an item characteristic depiction representation when viewed through a gap between the conveyor stages of an induction module, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. Partial side view depicting an exemplary arrangement of scanning elements.
FIG. 5A is an autonomous delivery vehicle configured to transport an item to a destination area and to discharge the item to a destination area to receive an item transferred from an item characteristic description derivation module, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. Top view of the.
FIG. 5B is a side view of the autonomous delivery vehicle of FIG. 5A depicting an arrangement of first item-confining side walls in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
5C is another side view of the autonomous delivery vehicle of FIG. 5A, depicting an arrangement of second item constraining sidewalls in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
5D illustrates an arrangement of item support surfaces taken from a discharge end of a vehicle and constrained by first and second item restraint sidewalls, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. Another front view of an autonomous delivery vehicle.
5E is a perspective view of another embodiment of an autonomous delivery vehicle that may be utilized as part of a dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
6A is an induction module as depicted in FIGS. 4A-4C, one or more vertical array (s) of classification destinations, and those depicted in FIGS. 5A-5D, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. A perspective view depicting a dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system incorporating the same plurality of autonomous delivery vehicles.
6B is a top plan view of the reconfigurable sorting array system of FIG. 6A, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
FIG. 6C is a side view depicting an interior configuration of an exemplary vertical sorting array structure, in accordance with one or more embodiments, wherein the array structure shows a path arranged to align each vehicle with any sorting location of the array structure. FIG. Characterized by a network of tracks for guiding autonomous delivery vehicles accordingly.
FIG. 6D is a partial side view depicting an external arrangement of an exemplary vertical sorting array structure, in accordance with one or more embodiments, the array structure defining sort destinations arranged in a vertical column.
FIG. 6E is an enlarged view of the area of FIG. 6D surrounded by lines V1-D, with both an arrangement of individually addressable multilayer LEDs and an alignment of machine readable indications for each column of the sort destination. Each of which is adapted to facilitate reporting and / or notification of certain events related to the use and / or operation of a dynamically configurable classification array system in accordance with one or more embodiments.
7A is a flow diagram depicting a technique for classifying items utilizing a dynamically reconfigurable classification array, in accordance with one or more embodiments.
7B is a flow diagram depicting a technique for implementing both manual and automatic classification of items using a dynamically reconfigurable classification array, in accordance with one or more embodiments.
8 is a flow diagram depicting individual steps applicable to the allocation of items for accumulation at each classification destination, which may be performed as a sub-process of the technique of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments.
9 is a flow diagram depicting individual steps applicable to characterization of an item at a classification station, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments.
FIG. 10 is a flow diagram depicting individual steps that are individually applicable to the transport of an item by a delivery vehicle movable along an array of sorting locations, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments. .
FIG. 11 is a flow diagram depicting a sequence of steps applicable to characterization of one or more features of an item prior to a classification operation, which may be performed as a subprocess of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure.
12 is a detailed block diagram of a computer system, in accordance with one or more embodiments, that may be utilized in various embodiments of the present invention to implement a computer and / or display device, in accordance with one or more embodiments.

A system for automating the accumulation of one or more items at each sorting destination to form a corresponding group of items (eg, to deliver to a customer in fulfillment of an order or to bulk replenishment of items to inventory). And techniques are described. The items are automatically identified by the scanning process when carried along the conveyor stage of the guide module or between the conveyor stages. Optionally, one or more characteristics (eg, weight, length, height or width) are determined with reference to data relating to the identification. Additionally or alternatively, one or more sensors of the induction module may be activated to determine one or more characteristic (s). In an embodiment, the item so identified and / or characterized is transferred from the conveying conveyor of the induction module to an autonomous delivery vehicle that is movable in an aisle that extends parallel to the vertical array of storage locations. Each delivery vehicle is self-propelled and includes an ejection mechanism for transporting items that each delivery vehicle receives from the induction module and transported to the sorting location, to the sorting location where each delivery vehicle is aligned. In some embodiments, the discharging mechanism is a conveyor configured to move an item along a discharging path transverse to the orientation of the passageway in which the vehicle travels.

In some embodiments, a visible event annunciator comprising an array of light emitting elements is aligned with each classification destination. In one embodiment, each monitored event is assigned a corresponding operating mode of the light emitting element. For example, in the first mode of operation, the light emitting element may be configured to display the first color (eg, during a vehicle jam that prevents the vehicle and anything behind it from traversing a passage or portion of the passage. For example, red) and a first pattern (flashing). In the second mode of operation, the light emitting element is, at the sorting position, a second color (eg white) and a second pattern (eg constant) to indicate that the aggregation of the items for forming the group is complete. solid). In such a case, the second mode of operation alerts the operator that the item or bin containing the item may be removed and transported to the box for shipment.

As yet another example, in a third mode of operation, the visible event notification device causes a light emitting element that is aligned with a first zone of the classification zone to be illuminated in one color or color pattern, and causes the second zone of the classification zone to be different from the other. It may also be illuminated in color or pattern. The dynamic configuration of zones in this manner facilitates assigning different zones to different operators, or, alternatively, zones with different priorities for implementation work (eg, completed and impending departure from the facility). The area that needs to be loaded into a truck). Neither the zone nor the classification destination area containing the zone need be adjacent to each other.

In an embodiment, the items required for aggregation at more than one location are for re-directing the delivery vehicle to a different destination than the destination initially assigned to the delivery vehicle upon initial transfer from the induction module. May be re-routed by Such redirection may respond to a rearrangement of order priorities, or an event detected by the delivery vehicle. For example, the delivery vehicle may determine, by the onboard sensor, that the intended classification destination area is full or overflowing and that a container normally placed in the intended classification destination area is missing. In an embodiment, the detection of such an event is reported to a controller of the dynamically reconfigurable classification array, where the controller of the reconfigurable classification array then executes instructions in memory to generate instructions appropriate for the delivery vehicle and / or event notification device. Run In yet another embodiment, the item is discharged directly by the vehicle to each shipping box, box, or bag that is disposed in some or all of the sort destination area.

1 is generally 10-1 to 10-, operable under the supervision of a centralized warehouse management system 20 and forming part of an order fulfillment device 30, in accordance with exemplary embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. is a block diagram depicting one or more dynamically reconfigurable classification array systems, represented by n. In an embodiment consistent with this disclosure, the order fulfillment device 30 may also include an order entry and scheduling system, generally referred to as 40, a Return Material Authorization (RMA) processing system 50, generally 60-1. One or more automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS), denoted from 60 to 60-m, and, in an exemplary embodiment, to detect a subset of items that require manual classification. One used to confirm their manual placement in the classification destination area and / or to confirm that items associated with the order in the destination area have been cleared so that the destination area can be reassigned to the next order in the queue. Or more handheld scanners.

FIG. 2 may perform one or more dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system (DRSAS) in operation of an order fulfillment center, such as the order fulfillment center 30 depicted in FIG. 1. As shown is a block diagram depicting DRSAS systems 100-1 through 100-n whose operation is coordinated by warehouse management system (WMS) 200. FIG.

With continued reference to the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 2, the DRSAS 100-1 may include a controller 110, an item derivation module 130, and a plurality of self-propelled deliveries, generally indicated by reference numerals 140-1 through 140-j. In an optional track guided implementation of the vehicle, and the delivery vehicle as the vehicle 140-1, each when traversing a path extending from the point at which the item is received from the guidance module to the point at which the item is discharged from the sorting destination area, respectively. It will be appreciated that it includes a destination array gate actuator that is activated by the controller 110 as needed to define an appropriate route for routing the delivery vehicle. However, in another embodiment, the gate mechanism of the DRSAS is mechanically actuated by the delivery vehicle instead of a controller, such as controller 110.

The DRSAS of FIG. 2, in some embodiments, further includes an alert and / or notification device system 160. As will be described in more detail soon, in some embodiments, the alert / notification device system is provided by the controller 110 to provide a visual indication in response to a plurality of monitored events and / or alert presentation requests. And / or by WMS 200.

In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 2, WMS 200 acts as a controller directing the operation of one or more DRSAS systems, such as system 100-1. To this end, the WMS 200 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 202, an input / output interface 206, support circuitry 208, and one or more network interfaces 210. The CPU 202 is configured to fetch and execute instructions stored in memory to implement the DRSAS control module 220. The DRSAS control module 220 includes a sort designation assigner 230 for specifying the classification area destination (s) to which each item targeted for at least one order and / or RMA replenishment procedure will be delivered. do. Frequently ordered items may be needed, for example, in more than one classification destination area of the DRSAS. For each order, item aggregation queue builder 232 specifies a list of one or more items that will form a group destined for one or more dynamically assignable classification destination areas.

In some embodiments, the queue builder may assign the first subset of the items of the group to the first classification destination area and the second subset of the items of the group to the second classification destination area. For example, if the volume occupied by all the items needed for grouping is too large to be accommodated by a single destination, it may be appropriate to allocate the items among multiple classification destinations. The identification of the item may, in some embodiments, further include a database of item characteristics, such as the weight, length, width, and height of each item in the inventory, or a library of UPC codes that may be supplemented by them. It is facilitated by an item indicium database 236. In some embodiments, item property database 238 is configured by accumulating data reported by induced event monitor 234. As an illustrative example, in some embodiments, the induction event reported to the induction event monitor 234 of the WMS 200 may include weight data collected by a weight sensor associated with each induction module 130. have. Likewise, a properly arranged light plane generator, the leading edge and the trailing edge of each item, as they are carried by the feed conveyor of the induction module 130 May be detected. As such, through knowledge of conveyor speed, the length of the item may be detected in the induction module and reported to the induction event monitor 234 as an event.

Thus, by accumulating and / or analyzing stored information about each item, it is desirable for sort destination assigner 230 to determine the number and / or height of destination classification areas required for a particular group of items. You will see that it is possible. Indeed, such accumulated item characteristic data may be used in other ways to improve the operation of the DRSAS. For example, for ergonomic efficiency and prevention of back injury, it may be advantageous for the classification destination allocator 230 to assign a heavier item or group of items to a height of 1 to 1.5 meters or less above the floor. . Such allocation may be initiated by execution of an instruction stored in memory forming a destination availability monitor 239 that tracks which classification destination area is empty / available at a given moment in time, or Selecting one or more classification destination areas that satisfy the applicable filter criteria, which may include, for example, the height above the floor and / or the distance to the packaging area and the corresponding destination area. It may be initiated by making a reservation such that these destination areas are allocated when this becomes available.

In addition to the classification destination allocator 230, the DRSAS control module of the WMS 200 optionally includes, in some embodiments, a data store including a DRSAS event monitor 242, a macro event monitor, and an event notification device rule. Alert / annunciation specifier 240. In addition, or as an alternative example, the alert / notification designator may be implemented as part of the DRSAS itself (as will be discussed soon with reference to FIG. 3). In any case, and with continued reference to FIG. 2, the events monitored by the DRSAS event monitor 242 may include removal of a container, box, or bag from a delivery vehicle jam or stop, a full destination classification area, a destination classification area. Events, such as the assignment of one or more classification destination zones to a priority zone, or the assignment of one or more classification destination zones to a particular operator or group of operators.

On the other hand, the events monitored by the macro event monitor 244 can only be used for emergency and / or lunch indications, coffee breaks, or operator (s) and user (s) of DRSAS that affect the entire facility. In addition, it may include events such as other activities of interest to others nearby.

FIG. 3 depicts, in more detail, a dynamically configurable sorting array system 300 constructed in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure consistent with that depicted in FIG. 2 and configured to operate in cooperation with the WMS 200. It is a block diagram. As shown in FIG. 3, the DRSAS 300 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a memory 304, an input / output interface 306, a support circuit 308, and one or more network interfaces 310. The CPU is configured to fetch and execute instructions stored in memory for implementing the DRSAS control module 325. Memory 304 also includes an operating system 320.

According to the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3, the DRSAS control module 325 includes a WMS interface module 330, an induction control module 350, a passage control module 340, and a notification device / alarm module 360. .

The WMS interface module 330 facilitates coordination of classification destination assignments, relay of event notifications, and any alert or notification request initiated by the WMS 200. To this end, the WMS interface module 330 includes, in some embodiments, a classification destination scheduler 332 that implements classification destination reservations and queuing requests made by the WMS 200. The WMS interface module 330 further includes a DRSAS event reporter 334, which classifies beyond the last item, dwell timeout (ie, specified time window or threshold) of the group reaching the classification destination area. Report events such as incomplete grouping of long dragged items in the destination area, vehicle jam or stop, available destination classification areas, and so forth. Optionally, the WMS interface 330 includes an alert scheduler 336, which, for example, initiates the operation of the notification device system 160 to initiate a memory 204 of the WMS 200. Enforce the event notification rule 246 (FIG. 2) which resides in.

With continued reference to FIG. 3, it will be appreciated that the DRSAS 100 further includes an induction control module 350, a passage control module 340, and a notification device module 360. The induction control module includes a supply conveyor control module 352, an image / display acquisition module 353, a weight characteristic description sensor 354, a transport control module 355, an induction event monitor 356, and an induction event reporter 357. It includes. In an embodiment, the induction module 130 includes one or more supply conveyors and transport conveyors for supplying items one at a time onto the corresponding delivery vehicle. In one embodiment, the feed conveyor control module 352 controls the start, stop, and speed of the feed conveyor (s) of the item derivation module 130. In some embodiments, the speed of the feed conveyor is determined based on the weight of the item being conveyed. The inventors observe that approximately 5 to 8 kilograms of an item will often overshoot the support surface of the delivery vehicle to which it is to be transported if it is allowed to move fast enough on the feed conveyor or transfer conveyor. It was.

In some embodiments, each delivery vehicle includes an item support belt capable of advancing in at least one direction to eject the item into the sorting destination area. As long as the item does not slow down to the point where the center of gravity of the item does not move beyond the edge of the belt surface, the item may end in a reject bin. In order to avoid this, through the feed conveyor control module 352, to ensure the delay of the feed speed of the feed conveyor, and / or through the feed control module 355, the item to ensure the delay of the feed rate of the feed conveyor One or more weight characteristic description sensors 354 may be placed under the belt of the supply conveyor of the induction module so that a real-time decision may be made regarding whether this is heavy enough. Guided event monitor 356 monitors events such as successful scanning of items, failed item scans, their rejection due to two or more items being fed too closely together, and successful transfer to a delivery vehicle, and guided event reporter 356 reports the event and any acquired image data to the WMS 200.

The passage control module 340 is, in an exemplary embodiment consistent with this disclosure, an instruction generator module 342 for formulating instructions to be sent to the delivery vehicle 140 (eg, via a wireless data transmission path). It includes. Events detected and / or affecting the vehicle 140 are monitored by the vehicle event monitor 343 and, where appropriate, these events are reported to the WMS 200 and / or specified commands (eg, stop). Is used to determine when to be transmitted to delivery vehicle 140 via network interface (s) 310. The vehicle position monitor 345 of the passage control module 340, in conjunction with the traffic control module 346, enables the controller 300 to ensure avoidance of collisions between delivery vehicles. Optionally, the passage control module of the controller 300 further includes a gate / path control module for opening and closing the gate along the track that guides each delivery vehicle to the intended classification destination area. Finally, the notification device module 360 selectively energizes one or more layers of light emitting diodes or other light emitting elements in accordance with a set of event notification rules, such as the rules 246 stored and enforced by the WMS controller 200. An event status monitor and a visual indicator control for the provision.

4A depicts functional components of the example item derivation module 400, which may form part of the dynamically configurable classification array system 300 of FIG. 3, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. This is a block diagram. The arrangement of FIG. 4A contemplates the use of at least some induction modules, passageways, and local controllers to perform alarm / notification control functions. As such and as shown in FIG. 4, the induction module 400 includes a local controller 406, a CPU 404, a memory 404, an I / O interface 408, a support circuit 410, a network interface. 412.

Referring now to FIG. 4A, in conjunction with FIG. 4B, which is a top plan view depicting components of the example item induction module 400 of FIG. 4A, the induction module 400 includes three conveyor stages, namely a first supply conveyor stage ( 442, a second conveyor stage 444, and a transfer conveyor stage 446. Items falling on the item carrying surface of the first conveyor stage 442 are advanced in the direction of arrow D toward the scanning area of the "tunnel frame" 452. Tunnel frames support a network 450 of image and / or line scanners. In the embodiment of FIG. 4B, an exemplary network of image acquisition scanners is shown below, above and above the scanning area, the first and second lateral scanner pairs shown at 450A, 450B and 450C, 450D, respectively, whose fields converge in the scanning area. The scanner 450E being directed, and in some embodiments, the field includes an elevated scanner (not shown) that converges from the upstream and downstream locations of the scanning area to the scanning area.

4C depicts a portion depicting an arrangement of an exemplary scanning element that is dimensioned and arranged to obtain an image of an item characteristic description representation when viewed through a gap between conveyor stages of an induction module, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Side view. As best seen in FIG. 4C, a gap G is defined between the feed conveyor 444 and the transfer conveyor 446. Beyond this gap, an additional scanning unit, represented generally at 450F in the exemplary embodiment, includes a line projector 454 and an image acquisition lens 456. In order to enable items with relatively small dimensional profiles to be processed by the DRSAS, the gap G is preferably as small as possible. In an embodiment, a gap of about 0.375 "(approximately 1 cm) is provided herein to provide an acceptable result that exceeds a commercially acceptable item supply rate (typically between about 1000 and 2000 or more items per hour). It was observed by the inventor.

It is observed by the inventors of the present invention that at a commercially acceptable feed rate, it is desirable to maintain proper spacing between the items (typically 0.25 inches or about 6.4 mm) when the items are fed into the scanning area of the induction module 400. It became. Such interval ensures that the item can be singulated before proceeding to the loading station 470 (FIG. 4B) where the item is transported onto the surface of the waiting delivery vehicle 140 (FIG. 3).

FIG. 5A illustrates that the item is transported to the classification destination area, and the item is retained in the destination area (or in the classification destination area) to accommodate the item being transferred from the item characteristic description derivation module 400 (FIGS. 4A-4C). Top plan view of an exemplary autonomous delivery vehicle 500 configured to discharge to a container, box, bag, or other container.

Each delivery vehicle 500 may have an onboard power source as an ultra capacitor 582 (FIG. 5D) and an onboard motor as a motor 580 (FIG. 5B) to drive the delivery vehicle to a destination area. -Autonomous vehicle. In some embodiments, the vehicle includes toothed wheels as wheels 502, 504, 506, and 508, where the wheels 502, 504, 506, and 508 are engaged with correspondingly dimensioned teeth of the track, and Aligns with the vertical column of the classification destination area and guides each vehicle from loading station 470 to any destination in the array, as will be explained in more detail soon. Each vehicle may include a loading / unloading mechanism 510, such as a conveyor, for loading a piece onto the vehicle and discharging the article from the vehicle.

In some embodiments, pairs of light planes 517 and 519 are created during the movement of delivery vehicle 500 or during the transfer of items onto the surface of loading / unloading mechanism 510. In the embodiment of FIGS. 5A-5E, these light planes are generated by the laser 513 (FIG. 5E) of the sensor assembly 514, which also comprises a 1 × K array of light sensors 515. It includes. The output of the laser 513 is directed to a lens (not shown) to project the first portion of the plane 517 or 519 in the direction of the reflector disposed proximate the opposite sidewall (side wall 524) of the vehicle 500. By a thin laser line. This laser line is reflected back onto the light sensor array 515 across the exhaust path of the vehicle 500, thereby forming a second portion of the plane 517 or 519. In an embodiment, the height of the projected planes 517 and 519 may be approximately 10 cm. By the inventors of the present invention, such dimensions have a wide range of geometric shapes that require increasing the spacing between vehicles so much as to prevent storage and / or reloading along a normal vertical charging rail (not shown). It has been found that it is sufficient to detect the transfer of an item with.

FIG. 5B is a side view of the autonomous delivery vehicle of FIG. 5A depicting an arrangement of first item restraint sidewall 520 in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure, while FIG. 5C is one consistent with this disclosure. 5A is a further side view of the autonomous delivery vehicle of FIG. 5A, depicting the arrangement of the second item restraint sidewall 524 according to the above embodiment. The inventors of the present application have selected certain items, in particular, items having circular cross-sectional profiles and / or arcuate outer profiles such that the items have axes that allow full or partial rotation during processing by the DRSAS configured in accordance with the present invention. Found. An exemplary item, generally represented by P in FIG. 5D, is shown to have a tendency to roll in the direction of the arrow towards or away from either side edge of rotation axis A and conveyor surface 512. To some extent, the tendency of items such as items P to roll during processing can be minimized by orienting them on the feed conveyor 444 such that the axis of rotation is parallel to the feed direction of the conveyor. However, even if such an ideal orientation is achieved (the inventors have observed that, at higher feed rates, this is not always the case), the delivery vehicle itself traverses the transport direction of the input module (eg vertical Move along the passage extending in the) direction. Sidewalls 520 and 524 prevent items that tend to roll, or even slide, from rolling or slipping on the item carrying surface 512. In one embodiment, the side walls 520 and 524 extend from the item support surface 512 by a height h, which may be approximately 3 to 5 cm for purposes of illustrative examples.

5D illustrates an arrangement of item support surfaces 512 of the conveyor 510 taken from the discharge end of the vehicle and constrained by the first and second item restraint sidewalls, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. It is another front view of the autonomous delivery vehicle 500 of FIGS. 5A-5C.

Referring now to FIGS. 6A-6E, a DRSAS configured to classify items is generally designated 600. FIG. 6A is an induction module, such as induction module 400 depicted in FIGS. 4A-4C, one or more vertical array (s) of classification destinations, and FIGS. 5A-5, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. A perspective view depicting a dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system incorporating a plurality of autonomous delivery vehicles, such as vehicle 500 depicted in 5d. 6B is a top plan view of the reconfigurable sorting array system of FIG. 6A, in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. 6C is a side view depicting an interior configuration of an exemplary vertical sorting array structure, in accordance with one or more embodiments, the array structure being along a path arranged to align each vehicle with any sorting location of the array structure. It features a network of tracks for guiding autonomous delivery vehicles. 6D is a partial side view depicting an external arrangement of an exemplary vertical sorting array structure, in accordance with one or more embodiments, wherein the array structure defines a sorting destination arranged in a vertical column. FIG. 6E is an enlarged view of the area of FIG. 6D surrounded by lines V1-D, showing both an arrangement of individually addressable multilayer LEDs and an alignment of machine readable indications for each column of the sort destination. Each of which is adapted to facilitate reporting and / or notification of certain events related to the use and / or operation of a dynamically configurable classification array system in accordance with one or more embodiments.

Apparatus 600 includes a plurality of delivery vehicles 500 that move along a network of tracks 608 to deliver items to a plurality of destinations or sorting locations, such as output containers 606. The item is loaded into the vehicle at the loading station 603 so that each vehicle receives the item to be delivered to the sorting location. Induction station 602 continuously supplies items to loading station 603. One or more characteristics of each item may be used to control the processing of the item as the vehicle moves to the output container along track 608 (FIG. 6C). The characteristic (s) of each item may be known from each item or the characteristic (s) may be obtained by the system as the system processes the item. For example, the induction station 602 may include one or more scanning elements for detecting one or more characteristics of the item.

From the loading station 603, the vehicle 500 moves along the track 608 (FIG. 6C) to the destination. The track may include a horizontal top rail, such as rail 610-1 of FIG. 6C, and a horizontal bottom rail 610-2, which acts as a return leg. A number of parallel vertical track legs, generally represented at 608-1 through 608-4, may extend between the upper rail and the lower return leg. The vessel 606 may be arranged column by column between the vertical track legs 610.

Since the DRSAS system 600 includes a plurality of vehicles 500, the positioning of the vehicles is controlled to ensure that different vehicles do not collide with each other. In an embodiment of DRSAS consistent with FIG. 3, the DRSAS 600 includes a central controller that provides control signals to each vehicle for tracking the position of each vehicle 500 and controlling the progression of the vehicle along the track. use. The central controller may also control the operation of the various elements along the track, such as the gate.

The following description provides details of various elements of the system, including induction station 602, track systems including tracks 608 and 610, and vehicle 500. Next, how the system works will be described. In particular, the manner in which the items are delivered may be controlled based on the characteristics of the items.

Induction station

At the induction station 602, the item is guided into the system by continuously loading the item onto the vehicle 500. Since the characteristics of the item may be used to control the operation of the vehicle, the system may need to know the characteristics. In one case, such a feature may be stored in a central database so that the feature is known, and the system tracks the progress of the item so that the identification of the item is known when the item reaches the derivation station 602. In this way, since the identification of the item is known, the DRSAS 600 can retrieve data regarding the characteristics of the item stored in the database. Alternatively, items are scanned and / or metered at the induction station 602 to identify one or more characteristics of each item.

In one embodiment, each item is manually scanned at the induction station for detection of one or more characteristics of the item. These properties are used to confirm the identification of the item. Once an item is identified, various properties of the item may be retrieved from the central database and the item may be subsequently processed based on the known properties of the item. For example, induction station 602 may include a scanning station that scans a product code, such as a barcode. Once the product code is determined, the system retrieves information about the product from the central database. This information is then used to control further processing of the item, as discussed further below.

In a second embodiment, the item is scanned at the induction station 602 to detect various physical characteristics of the item. For example, the induction station 602 may measure characteristics such as the length, height, and / or width of the item. Similarly, the weight or shape of the item may be detected. These characteristics may be detected manually or automatically at the induction station. For example, a series of sensors may be used to detect the length of the item and a scale may be used to automatically weigh the item. Alternatively, the operator may analyze each item and enter information about each item through an input mechanism such as a mouse, keyboard or touch screen. For example, the system may include a touch screen that includes one or more questions or options. One example would be packaging [Is the item in a plastic bag? Is it in a blister pack or not packed? Is the item flat, cylindrical or round?]. If the element has a different property than the default value, the system may include a default property so that the operator only needs to identify the property of the element. For example, the default property for an item may be flat or rectangular. If the item is rounded (eg, spherical or cylindrical), the operator enters information indicating that the item is rounded and the item is subsequently processed accordingly. Based on the detected information, the item is processed accordingly.

As mentioned above, various configurations may be used for the input station, including manual configuration or automatic configuration or a combination of manual and automated characteristics. In a manual system, an operator enters information for each item and the system delivers the item accordingly. In an automated system, the input system includes an element that scans each item and detects information about each item. The system then delivers the item according to the scanned information.

In an exemplary manual configuration, the input system includes a workstation having a conveyor, an input device such as a keyboard, and a monitor. The operator reads information about an item, such as an ID tag, enters the information from the tag into the system using a keyboard or other input device, and then places it on the conveyor. The conveyor then carries the article to the loading station 603. For example, the operator may visually read the information marked on the item, or the operator may read a barcode or other marking on the item using an electronic scanner such as a barcode reader. As the conveyor carries items towards the loading station, sensors located along the conveyor may track the article.

Alternatively, as shown in FIGS. 4A-4C, the induction station 602 may include a scanning station for automatically detecting the characteristics of the item. Specifically, induction station 602 may include a feed conveyor for receiving an item and delivering the item to a scanning station operable to detect one or more physical characteristics of the item. The transfer conveyor 446 of FIG. 4B carries the item from the scanning station to the loading station 603, where the item is loaded onto one of the vehicles 500 or delivered to the reject container.

The input feed conveyor may be any of a variety of conveying devices designed to convey items. In particular, the input feed conveyor may be designed to accommodate items being lowered onto the conveyor. For example, the input feed conveyor may be a horizontal conveyor belt or a horizontal roller bed formed of a plurality of generally horizontal rollers driven to advance items along the conveyor away from the rollers.

The input feed conveyor may be configured to allow an operator to select an item from a supply of items located adjacent to the input conveyor. For example, a separate feeder conveyor may carry a constant stream of items to the induction station 602. The operator may continuously select an item from the supply conveyor and drop the item onto the input conveyor 602. Alternatively, a large container of items, such as a container or other container, may be disposed adjacent to the input feed conveyor. The operator may select items from the supply bins one at a time and place each item on the input conveyor. Additionally, the input conveyor 602 may cooperate with a supply assembly that continuously supplies items onto the input conveyor. For example, the feeder conveyor may carry a continuous stream of items towards the input conveyor 602. The input conveyor may include a sensor for detecting when an item is transported away from the input conveyor. In response, the system may control the operation of both the feeder conveyor and the input conveyor 602 to drive the item forward from the feeder conveyor onto the input conveyor. In this way, the items may be fed onto the input conveyor either manually by the operator or automatically by a separate feed mechanism operable to feed the items to the input conveyor.

Various factors may be detected to evaluate how the item is processed. For example, an item is typically identified so that the system can determine where or where the item is to be delivered. This is normally done by determining a unique product code for the item. Thus, if the system can identify the item using product markings or other indicators, the system may electronically tag the item as eligible for classification. For example, the operator may read the product identification code on the item and enter the product code into the system using an input mechanism such as a keyboard. If the product code entered by the operator corresponds to the correct product code, the item may be eligible for classification. Alternatively, if the operator incorrectly enters the product code or if the product code does not correspond to the recognized item, the system may electronically tag the item as unqualified.

Similarly, the system may include a scanning element for scanning product identification markings on the product. For example, items may include various markings, including but not limited to, machine readable optical labels such as barcodes (eg, QR codes or UPC codes), printed alphanumeric characters or unique graphic identifiers. It may be marked with one or more of. The scanning station may include a scanner or reader for reading such markings. For example, a barcode reader, optical reader or RFID reader may be provided to scan an item to read an identification marking.

The reader is manually operated by an operator, such as a handheld laser scanner, CCD reader, bar code wand or camera-based detector, which attempts to scan the image of the item and analyze the image data to identify product identification markings. It may also be a handheld device that can be operated with. In this way, the operator can manipulate the item and / or detection device to scan the identification marking on the item. Alternatively, the scanner or reader may be embedded in any of the aforementioned devices, embedded in an induction station such that the item is simply carried over an embedded reader that reads a product identification marking, across an embedded reader or past an embedded reader. It may be a scanner. Using such a device, the operator may pass the item over the scanner, or the item may be automatically transported past the scanner.

Once the product identification marking is determined (either manually or automatically), the system retrieves information about the product and then controls further processing of the item based on the information stored in the central database.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that various different input mechanisms may be utilized to attempt to determine the product identification marking on the item. In the present case, the scanning system includes one or more optical readers operable to scan the item to obtain optical image data of the item. The system then processes the optical image data to detect the presence of product identification markings. If a product identification marking is detected, the system analyzes the marking to determine a product identification number or code.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 4A-4C, a scanning station in accordance with some embodiments may include a plurality of optical imaging elements, such as a digital camera, disposed along a supply conveyor. The imaging elements are spaced apart from one another and placed around the feed conveyor so that the imaging elements can scan the various sides of the item as the item is conveyed toward the loading station. Specifically, the scanning station includes one or more cameras 450 directed along the horizontal axis to scan the front and back sides of the item. In particular, the scanning station may comprise a plurality of imaging elements disposed along the front edge of the feed conveyor and a plurality of imaging elements disposed along the rear edge of the feed conveyor. Additionally, the scanning station may include one or more cameras that are directed along the vertical axis to scan the top of the item as the item is transported along the feed conveyor. Additionally, additional imaging elements may also be provided to scan the leading and trailing faces of the item when the supply conveyor carries the item. In addition, the feed conveyor may comprise a transparent surface on which the item is carried so that the bottom surface of the item can be scanned by the detection station. In this way, the scanning station may be arranged with an array of sensors, reading elements, scanning elements or detectors placed around the path of travel so that the scanning station can automatically scan the item for an identification mark while the item is transported along the path. It may also include.

As described above, the scanning station may analyze each item to attempt to find a product identification marking that will identify the item based on the marking. Once the product identifier is determined, the system may determine a destination for the item and the item may be electronically tagged as eligible for classification. Similarly, based on the information about the product code stored in the database, a parameter may also be determined how the item should be handled by the vehicle. Conversely, if a product identifier is not determined for an item, the item may be electronically tagged as not eligible for classification.

In addition to analyzing the item to find product markings, the scanning station may incorporate one or more elements operable to evaluate, analyze or measure the physical characteristics of the item to determine how to process the item. For example, the scanning station may include a scale for weighing the item. If the detected weight is greater than the threshold, the system may electronically tag the item as requiring some handling during subsequent processing. For example, if the weight exceeds a threshold, the system may control subsequent processing to ensure that the item is not discharged to the destination container where the fragile item is placed. Alternatively, if the weight exceeds a threshold (which may be different than the threshold mentioned above), the item may be tagged as not eligible for classification. Similarly, the scanning station may include one or more detectors for measuring linear measurements for each item. For example, the scanning station may measure the length, width and / or height of each item. If one of the measurements exceeds a predetermined threshold, the system may electronically tag the item as requiring special handling during subsequent processing. The system may use any of a variety of elements to measure one or more linear dimension (s) of an item at the scanning station. For example, the system may detect the leading and trailing ends of an item using beam sensors (eg, l / R emitters and opposing l / R detectors). Based on the known speed of the feed conveyor, the length of the item can be determined. Similarly, the beam sensor can be directed in a generally horizontal orientation spaced by a predetermined height above the feed conveyor. In this way, when an item breaks the beam sensor, the height of the item exceeds a predetermined threshold that allows the system to electronically tag the item as not eligible for classification.

Additionally, the operator may use the input mechanism to identify the item as not eligible for classification due to physical properties exceeding a predetermined threshold. For example, if an operator sees that a scale may be marked on the input conveyor and the item is too long or too wide or too high, the operator allows the item to be electronically tagged as not eligible for classification. It is also possible to press a button indicating that it has a physical property that exceeds a possible threshold. Similarly, measurement gauges can be used to evaluate the physical properties of an item. One type of measurement gauge is a tunnel or runway with spaced sides. If the item does not fit between the walls of the runway, the item is electronically tagged as exceeding the allowable height, length or width and not suitable for classification.

As described above, the scanning station may be configured to analyze each item to detect various characteristics of the item as the item is delivered through the induction station. The system may make an entitlement decision based on one or more of the characteristics detected or determined by the system. If the item is not eligible for classification, the item may be directed to reject area 625 to await further processing.

Typically, the item that is directed to the reject area 625 is subsequently processed manually. The operator takes each item, identifies the item and carries the item to the appropriate destination. Since manual processing of rejected items is time consuming and labor intensive, it is desirable to reduce the number of items that are directed to the reject area. Many of the items that are directed to the reject area 625 may simply have been incorrectly scanned. Although the item cannot be classified without sufficient identifying information, it may be possible to read the necessary information during subsequent scans.

Since it may be desirable to reprocess some unqualified items, the information detected during entitlement may be used to identify various categories of unqualified items. The first type of unqualified item is a reject item that is transferred to the reject area. In the discussion that follows, these items will be referred to as rejected items. The second type of unqualified item is an item that is not eligible for classification but is eligible for reprocessing. In the discussion below, these items will be referred to as reprocessing items.

The determination of whether an item is tagged as 'rejected', 'reprocessed' or tagged as 'classified' can be made based on various properties. In this case, the decision to tag the item as 'deny' is based on the physical characteristics of the item. Specifically, if an item fails to qualify due to physical properties (eg, has a linear dimension such as a height, width, or length above a threshold), the system electronically tags the item as rejected. The item is directed to the reject area 625 for manual processing. Likewise, if the scanning station includes a scale, the item is tagged as rejected if the weight exceeds the weight threshold. Alternatively, to allow for special handling, the speed of the transport conveyor may be slowed down to prevent the item from entering the reject container accidentally across the surface of the vehicle. On the other hand, if an item passes entitlement based on physical characteristics, but fails due to an inability to identify the product identification element, the element is re-processed so that the item can be reprocessed and attempt to read the product identification information. Electronically tagged with processing. For example, depending on the orientation of the product, the imaging element 450 may not have been able to correctly read the barcode or other identification mark. However, because the scanning station has determined that the item meets the physical parameters for processing the item, the system may convey the item through the system to a reinduction assembly that returns the item to the entry conveyor of the induction station.

In this way, the DRSAS system 600 may analyze the item to determine one or more characteristics of the item and determine whether the item is eligible for transport or whether the item is not carried through the system by the vehicle. It is operable to determine if the item needs to be set aside to ensure. By doing so, the system can minimize damage to an item or system that may occur if an oversized or overweight item is carried or attempted to be carried along a track by one of the vehicles 500. have. Also additionally, if an item is eligible for transport but fails to qualify for a classification, the item may be transported to a reinduction station that attempts to reprocess the item, as discussed further below. .

As can be seen from the foregoing, the induction station may be configured with a wide range of options. The options are not limited to the configurations described above, and may include additional features.

In addition, in the foregoing description, the system is described as having a single induction station. However, it may be desirable to integrate a plurality of induction stations disposed along the system 600. By using a plurality of induction stations, the feed rate of the article may be increased. In addition, the induction station may be configured to process various types of items. As yet another example, a single sorting station may be used to feed multiple sorting array structures. Thus, instead of immediately directing a movable vehicle within the aisle 623 (FIG. 6B) of the first array of sorting destinations to proceed to one of those destinations, the exhaust system of such a vehicle is a path of the second array of sorting destinations. An instruction may be received for transferring an item to another transfer conveyor that is dimensioned and arranged to transfer the item to a predetermined one of a plurality of second vehicles that are movable within. This process of transfer and re-transfer may be performed up to any number of cascaded DRSAS modules without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

The reject container 625 is arranged to face the supply conveyor of the induction station. In addition, the reject container 625 is aligned with the vehicle 500 waiting at the loading station 603. In this way, a clear path is provided from the induction station to the reject vessel 625 without requiring the movement of the vehicle along the track.

Reduction Assembly

The system may also include a reinduction system for items that were eligible for delivery but not eligible for classification. Alternatively, items that are not eligible for classification can simply be directed to the reject container 625 and handled individually. Items eligible for transport may be transported from the loading station to the reinduction station or to a sorting station. Specifically, a vehicle carrying an item that is eligible for transportation moves upward along the track 608-1 to the upper rail 610-1. Once the item on the vehicle is tagged with reassessment, the vehicle drives along with the track to reinduction assembly 641. The vehicle 500 then ejects the item onto the reinduction assembly 641, where the reinduction assembly 641 can be reprocessed through the induction assembly in an attempt to qualify the item for classification. The item is returned and conveyed toward the induction conveyor so that it may be.

Reinduction assembly 641 includes a path between the track and the induction station (induction module) to facilitate the return of the revaluation item to the induction station. Reinduction assembly 641 may include any of a number of transport mechanisms. The mechanism can be driven or static, can be electric or non-electric. However, in this case, the reinduction assembly 641 includes a roller bed that slopes downward so that the item tends to roll along the roller bed. Specifically, the roller bed has an upper end at the reinduction station. The reinduction station is positioned vertically higher than the lower end of the roller bed so that gravity tends to force the item along the roller bed when the item is discharged at the upper end of the roller bed at the reinduction station.

Sorting station

Items that are eligible for classification by the induction station are carried by the vehicle to the classification array. 6A-6E, the system includes an array of sort destinations for receiving items. These destinations may include shelf areas, containers as bins 606, boxes, bags, or other containers that define an interior volume for containing a group of one or more items.

As shown in FIG. 6C, the track 610 includes a horizontal upper rail 610-1 and a horizontal lower rail 610-2. The plurality of vertical legs 608-1 through 608-4 extend between the upper horizontal leg and the lower horizontal leg 610-2. During transport, the vehicle moves over a pair of vertical legs from the loading station to the upper rail 610-1. The vehicle then moves along the upper rail until it reaches a column or destination with a suitable container. The vehicle then moves downward along two front vertical posts and two parallel rear columns until it reaches the appropriate container or destination, and then ejects the item into the container or destination area. The vehicle then continues to descend the vertical leg until it reaches the lower horizontal leg 610-2. The vehicle then follows the lower rail back towards the loading station.

In an embodiment, the track network includes a front track arrangement as shown in FIG. 6C, and a rear track arrangement as can be seen in FIG. 6D. The front track and the rear track are parallel tracks that cooperate to guide the vehicle around the track. Turning briefly to FIGS. 5A-5E, the vehicle includes four wheels, respectively two forward wheels and two rear wheels. The front wheels ride on the front track, while the rear wheels ride on the rear track. In the discussion of the track network, it should be understood that the front track arrangement and the rear track arrangement are similarly constructed opposite the tracks supporting the front and rear wheels of the vehicle. Thus, the description of either part of the front track or the rear track also applies to the opposing front track or the rear track.

Referring now to FIG. 6C, a loading column is formed adjacent the output end of the induction station. The loading column is formed of the front pairs 608-1 and 608-2 of the vertical rails and the corresponding rear sets of the vertical rails. The loading station is arranged along the loading column. The loading station is a position along a track where a vehicle, such as vehicle 500, is aligned with the discharge end of the feed conveyor of the induction station. In this way, an item from the induction station may be loaded onto the vehicle when it is carried from the input station toward the vehicle.

The details of the track are substantially similar to the track described in US Pat. No. 7,861,844. The entire disclosure of US Pat. No. 7,861,844 is incorporated herein by reference.

As described above, the track includes a plurality of vertical legs extending between the horizontal upper rail 610-1 and the horizontal lower rail 610-2. An intersection point 613 is formed at each section of the track where one of the vertical legs intersects one of the horizontal legs. Each intersection, such as intersection 613, may include a pivotable gate having a smooth outer race and a flat outer race having teeth corresponding to the teeth of the drive surface for the track. have. The gate pivots between the first position and the second position. In the first position, the gate is closed so that the straight outer ring of the gate is aligned with the straight outer branch of the intersection. In the second position, the gate is opened such that the curved inner ring of the gate is aligned with the curved branch of the intersection.

In the foregoing description, the sorting array is described as a plurality of output containers 606. However, it should be understood that the system may include various types of destinations, not just output containers. For example, in certain applications, it may be desirable to classify items into storage areas, such as areas on storage shelves. Alternatively, the destination may be an output device that carries the item to another location, or the destination may be a box or bag that is sealed and ready to be shipped when the last of the group's items accumulate.

The output container 606 may generally be a rectilinear container having a bottom, two opposing sides connected to the bottom, and a front wall connected to the bottom and spanning between the two sides. The container may also have a rear wall opposite the front wall and connected to the bottom and spanning two sides. In this way, the container may be shaped similar to a rectangular drawer that can be withdrawn from the sorting station to remove items from the container.

The vessels in the column are spaced vertically from one another to provide a gap between adjacent vessels. Larger gaps provide more room for the vehicle to eject items into the lower container while preventing the container on the vehicle from interfering with the item. However, larger gaps also reduce the number of containers or the size of the containers (ie, container density). Thus, there may be a compromise between the size of the gap and the container density.

The vehicle 500 discharges the item into the container through the rear end of the container. Thus, when the backside of the container is opened, the vehicle can easily eject the item into the container through the rear open end of the container. However, if the container does not have a rear end, the item may easily fall out of the container when the container is withdrawn from the sorting rack. Thus, depending on the application, the container may have an open rear end or a closed rear end. If the rear end is closed, the rear wall may be flush with the front wall. Alternatively, the rear wall may be shorter than the front wall to provide an increased gap through which items may be ejected into the container. For example, the rear wall may be only half the height of the front wall. Optionally, the rear wall may be between one quarter and three quarters of the height of the front wall. For example, the rear wall may be between half and three quarters of the height of the front wall. Alternatively, the rear wall may be between 1/4 and 3/4 of the height of the front wall.

Alternatively, instead of having a fixed rear wall, the container 606 may have a rear wall that is movable or collapsible. For example, the rear wall of the container may be displaceable perpendicularly to the bottom of the container. In particular, the rear wall may be displaceable by pressing the rear wall downward. The back wall may be displaceable in a groove or slot formed in the side wall of the container such that the rear wall is displaced downward by pressing the back wall downward such that a portion of the back wall protrudes below the bottom of the container. In such embodiments, the rear wall may be deflected upward by a biasing element such as a spring, such that the rear wall is held in an upward position where the bottom edge of the rear wall is above the bottom edge of the container. Tends to be. The rear wall moves downward only in response to a force on the rear wall that exceeds the upward deflection force.

Another alternative container incorporates a collapsible back wall. As with the displaceable wall, the collapsible wall is moved downward by pressing the collapsible wall downward. The collapsible wall may be formed in a variety of configurations, such as an accordion configuration or a corrugated configuration that causes the wall to be folded down when the wall is pressed down. The collapsible wall may include a biasing element that biases the wall upwards into the extended position. For example, the biasing element may include one or more spring or elastomeric elements that deflect the wall upwards to an extended position.

As discussed above, the system is operable to classify various items into a plurality of destinations. One type of destination is a container, the second type is a shelf or other location where the item will be stored, and the third type of destination is an output device that may be used to transport the item to various locations. The system may include one or more of each of these or other types of destinations.

Delivery vehicle

Each delivery vehicle 500 is a semi-autonomous vehicle having an onboard drive system, including an onboard power supply. Each vehicle includes a mechanism for loading and unloading items for delivery. Embodiments of a vehicle that may operate in conjunction with system 600 are illustrated and described in US Pat. No. 7,861,844, which is incorporated herein by reference.

The vehicle 500 may incorporate any of a variety of mechanisms for loading an item onto the vehicle and discharging the item from the vehicle to one of the containers. Returning to FIG. 5 depicting an example vehicle, the loading / unloading mechanism 510 may be tailored specifically for a particular application. However, in this case, the loading / unloading mechanism 510 is one or more conveyor belt (s) extending along the top surface of the vehicle, as depicted in FIG. 5. The conveyor belt (s) may be flipped over. Driving the belt (s) in the first direction displaces the item toward the rear end of the vehicle and driving the belt (s) in the second direction displaces the item toward the front end of the vehicle.

A conveyor motor mounted on the underside of the vehicle drives the conveyor belt (s). Specifically, the conveyor belt 510 of FIGS. 5A-5D is wound around a front roller at the front edge of the vehicle and a rear roller at the rear edge of the vehicle. The conveyor motor is connected with the front roller to drive the front roller, thereby operating the conveyor belt.

The vehicle 500 includes four wheels used to carry the vehicle along the track arrangement. The wheels are mounted on two parallel spaced axles so that two of the wheels are disposed along the front edge of the vehicle and two of the wheels are disposed along the rear edge of the vehicle.

Each wheel as wheels 502, 504, 506, 508 of FIGS. 5A-5D includes an outer gear that cooperates with the drive surface of the track. The outer gear is fixed relative to the axle on which it is mounted. In this way, rotating the axle acts to rotate the gear. Thus, when the vehicle is moving vertically, the gears cooperate with the drive surface of the track to drive the vehicle along the track.

The vehicle includes an onboard motor for driving the wheels. More specifically, the drive motor is operably connected with the axle to rotate the axle, which then rotates the gears of the wheel.

As the vehicle travels along the track, items on the top of the vehicle may be prone to fall off the vehicle, especially when the vehicle accelerates and decelerates. In some embodiments, the vehicle, or subset thereof, may include a retainer (not shown) for retaining the element on the vehicle during delivery. The retainer may be a hold down that holds the item against the top surface of the vehicle. For example, the retainer may comprise a pivotable long arm. A biasing element, such as a spring, may bias the arm downward against the top surface of the retainer.

Alternatively, instead of using a retainer, the system may maintain an item on the vehicle by controlling the operation of the vehicle. For example, the vehicle may include a plurality of sensors (not shown) spaced apart from each other across the width of the vehicle. Sensors include, but are not limited to, photoelectric sensors (eg, via a beam sensor or retroreflective sensor) or proximity sensors (eg, capacitive sensors, photoelectric sensors, or inductive proximity sensors). May be any of a variety of sensors. The sensor can be used to detect the position of the item across the width of the vehicle. Specifically, the sensor may detect how close the item is to the front side or the rear side of the vehicle. Similarly, if the sensor is a proximity sensor, the sensor can detect how close the item is to the front end of the vehicle and / or the rear end of the vehicle. Additionally, the sensor can detect the movement of the item on the vehicle so that the system can detect the direction in which the item is moving when the item is moving on the vehicle.

Based on signals from sensors regarding the location or movement of the item on the vehicle 500, the system can control the vehicle to relocate the item to attempt to keep the item within a desired location on the vehicle. For example, it may be desirable to keep the item generally centered at the top of the vehicle. The system can control the item location of the vehicle using any of a variety of controls. For example, in some embodiments, vehicle 500 includes one or more conveyor belts for loading and ejecting items. The item rests on the belt, so the conveyor belt is operable to drive the item to the front edge or the rear edge in accordance with the signal received from the sensor. In one example, when a signal from the sensor indicates that the item is shifted closer to the rear edge than the front edge, the controller generates a signal that drives the conveyor belt in the first direction to drive the item toward the front edge. It can be transmitted to the motor driving the conveyor belt. Similarly, when a signal from the sensor indicates that the item has shifted closer to the front edge than the rear edge, the controller drives the conveyor belt in the second direction to drive the item in the opposite direction to drive the item toward the rear edge. The signal to be made may be transmitted to a motor driving the conveyor belt. The sensor provides continuous feedback so that the position of the item can be continuously monitored and adjusted toward the front edge or back edge as the item shifts. In this manner, the system provides a real time adjustment of the position of the item to provide a feedback loop for maintaining the item within a desired area on the vehicle top.

In addition, the system can monitor the position of the item in relation to the leading and trailing ends of the vehicle. In response to the detected position of the element, the system can control the operation of the vehicle if the item is too close to the tip or too close to the back. Specifically, the system may control acceleration and braking of the vehicle to attempt to shift the item toward the leading end or the rear end according to the detected position. If the sensor detects that the item is placed closer to the leading edge than the trailing edge, the vehicle may be accelerated (or acceleration may be increased) and, accordingly, may drive the item towards the trailing edge. Alternatively, the vehicle may be slowed to drive the item towards the tip.

In addition to verifying or monitoring the location of the item on the vehicle, sensors can be used to detect one or more characteristics of the item. For example, sensors can be used to detect the length or width of an item. Sensors may also be used to detect the general shape of the item. This information may be used during further processing of the item, as discussed further below.

As discussed above, the container 606 may include a displaceable or collapsible back wall. Thus, the vehicle may include a mechanism for applying sufficient downward force to the rear wall to overcome the biasing force that keeps the wall in the up or upright position. For example, the vehicle may include extensible elements such as pins or rods. As the vehicle approaches the target delivery container, the pin may extend laterally away from the vehicle such that the pin extends over the rear wall of the target container. As the vehicle approaches the container, the extended pin engages the upper edge of the rear wall of the container. When driving the vehicle downward, the pin is driven downward relative to the rear wall. The system may control the vertical position of the vehicle to control how far the vehicle pushes down or folds the rear wall. After the vehicle has discharged the item into the container, the extendable element may be retracted, whereby the biasing element may release the rear wall to displace the rear wall upwards to the upper position.

The vehicle 500 may be powered by an external power supply, such as a contact along a rail, that provides the power needed to drive the vehicle. However, in the present case, the delivery vehicle includes an onboard power source that provides the necessary power to both the drive motor and the conveyor motor. In addition, in the present case, the power supply is rechargeable. Although the power supply may include a power source such as a rechargeable battery, in this case, the power supply is composed of one or more ultra capacitors.

As discussed further below, the vehicle further includes a processor for controlling operation of the vehicle in response to a signal received from the central processor. Additionally, the vehicle includes a wireless transceiver so that the vehicle can continuously communicate with the central processor as the vehicle travels along the track. Alternatively, in some applications, it may be desirable to incorporate a plurality of sensors or indicators disposed along the track. The vehicle may include a reader for sensing sensor signals and / or indicators as well as a central processor for controlling the operation of the vehicle in response to the sensor or indicator.

work

FIG. 7A is a flow diagram depicting a process 700 for classifying items utilizing a dynamically reconfigurable sorting array system, such as any of the systems depicted in FIGS. 1-6E, in accordance with one or more embodiments. Process 700 begins at 702 and proceeds to 704, where one or more items containing related groups are associated with the classification destination area of the classification array structure. The classification destination area may comprise a container or shelf, such as a container, box, or bag. Relevant work of a group of items to individual classification locations may be performed continuously (ie, even after all available classification destinations are associated with a group of items). In such a case, each classification destination may have a virtual queue of groups associated with it, such that a priori related work of multiple groups of items may be established for each classification destination. Groups in the queue may have a default priority (eg, FIFO design), or in some embodiments, each group assigned to a classification destination queue may be handled by all of the higher priority groups in the queue first. Priority classes may be assigned so that the transfer of items belonging to the lower priority queue may be delayed until. In addition, the arrangement is dynamically configurable in that high priority groups waiting may be reassigned to different queues.

As an alternative example, the zone of the classification destination may be reserved for a higher priority group in a round-robin manner as the zone of the classification destination becomes available, wherein the group of items is assigned to the classification destination. do. In any event, whether based on fairness or based on a premium delivery fee scheme, various methodologies may be utilized to assign each group of items to a corresponding classification destination area without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Is enough. The method 700 proceeds from 704 to 706, where the method 700 detects the arrival of the item at the induction station of the classifier. The method proceeds to 708, where the method 700 identifies the item based on the recognition of a visible indication, such as, for example, a UPC code or the like.

In some embodiments, the method 700 proceeds to an optional decision process 710 at 708, where the method 700 associates the identified item with at least one classification destination of the array of classification destinations (classification locations). Determine whether or not. If not, the method 700 may query the WMS system to verify whether the item is associated with the order. Alternatively, the item may be processed, at 712, either by default as a reject container or a container designated for replenishment of a missed inventory item. In yet another embodiment, the method 700 may assign the item to an available container, and then each time it reenters the 710 during the execution of 700, the same indication or indications (eg, UPC code or Additional items with SKU #) may be directed to the same location.

If 710 and / or 712 are not executed, an embodiment of the method 700 proceeds directly from 708 to 714, where the method 700 delivers the item to the assigned classification destination via a semi-autonomous delivery vehicle. . In an embodiment of a method 700 that utilizes DRSAS with an automated notification device system, the method 700 may proceed from 714 to an optional event handling process, for example a system failure. Or failure of service, classification location where items cannot be accommodated, emergency throughout the facility, or failure to build a group of items at the classification destination within a predefined or configurable time window [according to the inventors herein, dwell time exceeded) "event. At 716, the method 700 determines whether one or more such events have occurred, and the method, at 718, activates one or more visual indicator (s) in accordance with the first notification and / or alert mode. From 718, the method 700 proceeds to 720 and, if appropriate for the event type, stops or stops the transport and / or transport of all items until the event is resolved. Upon resolving the event, the method 700 responds by stopping the at least one event notification process.

Notification of other alerts and / or events at 718, which may correspond to information useful to the operator (s) or user (s) of the DRSAS, indicates that the event status no longer exists and / or until a time such as a command is received. It may last until you do not. For example, a zone associated with a particular shipment to be loaded on a truck on a feeding basis may be depicted by energizing the light emitting element in a pattern surrounding the set of zones and / or non-adjacent sorting destinations comprising the zone ( may be delineated. Subsequent to the packaging and shipment of the group of items stored at the depicted classification destination, the method 700 may proceed to 722 to stop the depiction.

Alternatively, the method 700 may proceed directly to 724 to transfer the item to the sorting location. Once the item so transferred completes the grouping process according to 726, the method 700 may activate the notification device module to provide a visual indication of the completion event, and upon confirming that the classification destination is ready to be placed back in service, The notification device may deactivate the visual display at 730 or the notification device may change the visual display to continue delivering other information through different visual indications. The method 700 proceeds to 732 where, in response to the detection of a new item in the DRSAS, the system re-enters the method 700 at 732.

With respect to the process of FIG. 7A, implementations consistent with the present disclosure may have weight, dimension, and / or vulnerability considerations that prevent one or more items from being carried by an automated delivery mechanism as described so far. The form facilitates the implementation of both automatic and manual classification in a single classification array. A method 740 for implementing both manual and automatic classification of items using a dynamically reconfigurable classification array such as any of the systems depicted in FIGS. 1-6E is depicted in FIG. 7B.

One or more items containing related groups are associated with a classification destination area of the classification array structure. Any such group may include one or more items to be manually placed at the classification destination, one or more items to be transferred to the classification destination by an automated delivery mechanism, or some combination of the two. As described above, the classification destination area may comprise a container or shelf, such as a container, box or bag, and the associated work of a group of items for an individual classification location is continuous (ie even all available classification destinations may be Even after being associated with a group of items). In such a case, each classification destination may have a virtual queue of groups associated with it, such that a priori related work of multiple groups of items may be established for each classification destination.

Process 740 begins at 742 and proceeds to 744 where a scan event is detected. For convenience of explanation, it is assumed that a priori association has already been made between each item and the manner in which such item is to be handled. According to one embodiment, items are classified as appropriate for automatic classification by default and assigned to manual handling on an exception basis. For example, an item that is too long, too large, heavy or unstable to be carried by DRSAS's automated delivery mechanism (e.g., a delivery vehicle) will nevertheless have an empty box, bag in the classification destination area. Or, may be dimensioned to allow manual insertion into a container (or to be combined with other items already present at such a location). Exemplary scan events of items requiring manual sorting will be registered at 744 by a handheld scanner having a wireless transceiver for transmitting data indicative of an indication being read from the surface of the item. On the other hand, an exemplary scan event of an item suitable for automated transport is, alternatively, when the item passes through the scanning area of the tunnel frame 452 of the first conveyor stage 442 depicted in FIGS. 4A and 4B. It may be registered.

At 744, the method proceeds to 746 where the identification of the item is performed and proceeds to 748 where a classification destination is assigned to the item. In typical warehouse automation applications, warehouse management systems such as WMS 20 (FIG. 1) associate each item with a particular classification destination based on information available from the order entry and scheduling system 40 (FIG. 1). Let's do it. In order to enable identification, the scan event sends the WMS 200 by sending data representing the item representation directly from the scanner to the network interface 210 of the WMS 200 (as shown in FIG. 2, respectively). May be reported directly to the WMS. Alternatively, the scan event may be reported to the controller 110 of the DRSAS, as the DRSAS 100-1 of FIG. 2. In such embodiments, the controller of the DRSAS may relay the indication data to the WMS and wait to receive instructions from the WMS to specify the appropriate destination area for the identified item. In another embodiment, the association between the identified item and the appropriate destination area may be provided in advance to the controller of the DRSAS.

At 748, the process proceeds to 750, where the method 740 determines whether manual classification or automated classification is to proceed. If automated sorting will proceed, the method 740 proceeds to 752 and the processor of the DRSAS controller is configured to instruct the automated delivery mechanism (eg, delivery vehicle) to deliver the identified item to the assigned sorting destination. , Executes a command stored in memory. In an exemplary embodiment, the instructions for the automated delivery mechanism are wirelessly transmitted from the interface of the DRSAS controller to the interface of the semi-autonomous delivery vehicle. From 752, method 740 proceeds to 754, where method 740 receives confirmation that the item has been transferred to the classification destination. In an exemplary embodiment, the confirmation is registered by the operation of the sensor of the automated delivery vehicle. For example, an automated delivery vehicle may include one or more emitters and one or more detectors for determining whether an item crossed a beam or plane during an item transfer operation.

On the other hand, if the method 740 determines that manual sorting will proceed at 750, the method 740 proceeds to 756 instead. At 756, the method 740 initiates activation of the first visual alert indication (which may include one or more LEDs aligned with the assigned classification destination area). In one embodiment, the processor of the DRSAS controller executes instructions stored in memory to initiate activation of the first visual alert, the first visual alert being transmitted by, for example, the WMS controller and being WMS. It may respond to a command received from the controller or may be based on data previously supplied to the DRSAS controller and stored in the memory of the DRSAS controller. From 756, the method 740 proceeds to 758.

At 758, the method 740 receives a confirmation that the item was manually transferred to the assigned classification destination area. In an exemplary embodiment, an operator looking at the first visual indicator accesses a storage container located in an assigned storage area, withdraws the storage container, places an item within the storage container, and returns the storage container to its initial position. do. To confirm that this is complete, the same handheld scanner may be used to scan an indication associated with the container and / or assigned storage location and send data representing the scanned indication to the DRSAS controller and / or the WMS controller. Once the confirmation is registered at 754 or 758, method 740 proceeds to 760, where method 740 initiates deactivation (disappearance) of the first visual alert. As an illustrative example, the processor of the DRSAS controller may execute instructions stored in memory to power off one or more LEDs or other light sources that include the first visual alert.

From 760, the method 740 proceeds to 762, where the method 740, whether manually or automatically, determines whether the item just transferred to the classification destination area is the last item needed to complete the order. do. If so, the method 740 proceeds to 764 to initiate activation of the second visual alert visually distinguishable from the first visual alert. In an exemplary embodiment, the processor of the DRSAS controller executes instructions stored in memory to cause LEDs having a color different from the color associated with the first visual alert to be illuminated. Alternatively, or in addition, the second visual alert may have a flashing pattern to distinguish the second visual alert from a constant illumination pattern for the first visual alert.

In an exemplary embodiment, the person viewing the second visual indicator accesses the corresponding storage container, withdraws the storage container including the complement of the item corresponding to the complete order, and turns the retrieved storage container into an empty storage container. Replace (or move the item to the final shipping container and return the empty storage container to its initial location). To confirm that this is complete, a handheld scanner may be used to scan an indication associated with the container and / or assigned storage location and send data representing the scanned indication to the DRSAS controller and / or the WMS controller. Upon receiving this confirmation that the classification destination area is available again, the WMS controller and / or the DRSAS controller may assign the next group of items in the queue to that destination. The method 740 proceeds to 766 where the method 740 initiates deactivation (destruction) of the second visual alert. As an illustrative example, the processor of the DRSAS controller may execute instructions stored in memory to power off one or more LEDs or other light sources that include a second visual alert. If the method determines that the item did not complete the order at 762, or following completion of 766, the method 740 proceeds to 768, where the method 740 detects that a new item has been detected in the sorter. Determine whether or not. If no new item is detected in the classifier, the process ends at 770. If a new item is detected, the method returns to 746.

FIG. 8 depicts individual steps of a process 800 applicable to the allocation of items for accumulation at each classification destination, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique 700 of FIG. 7A in accordance with one or more embodiments. It is a flow chart. In one embodiment, the method 800 proceeds from 702 to 802 of the method 700 wherein a request is received to assign at least one classification location to item group j. In some embodiments, items associated with a single transaction may be assigned to more than one classification destination (especially the volume required to accommodate all items of a group, at any one classification destination, available volume, Or if it exceeds the economically recommended volume).

In some embodiments, method 800 optionally proceeds to block 804 from 802, where one or more attributes of the item are determined. The determination at 804 may be supported by real-time acquisition of data by a sensor of the DRSAS and / or it may be previously stored item characteristics depicted accessible based on the reading of an indication present on or otherwise associated with the item. It may also depend on retrieval of data. From 804, the method 800 may optionally proceed to 806, where the method 800 may include one or more acquired or retrieved item attributes (eg, weight, height, length, chemical composition, heat storage). Determine one or more classification locations based on requirements, etc.). From 802 (or 804 or 806), the method 800 proceeds to 808 to determine any classification location (s) with the required attributes (dimensions, height above the work surface, ambient temperature requirements, or the like). do. If not, the method 800 proceeds to 810 to continue monitoring the available DRSAS classification destinations (which may be distributed among multiple DRSAS systems) and to visit 808 again until such destinations become available.

If the result of the determination at 808 is positive, the method 800 proceeds to 812 and associates at least a subset of the items of the group with available classification locations. From 812, the method 800 may optionally proceed to 814, where one or more additional subsets of items of the group are associated with other classification locations. From 812 or 814, the method 800 reenters the method 700, at 706.

9 is a flow diagram depicting individual steps of a process 900 applicable to characterization of an item at a classification station, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique 700 of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments. In some embodiments, method 900 may be entered from step 704 of method 700 and actually performed as an implementation of process block 706 of process 700. In one embodiment, the method 900 begins at 902 where an item is scanned from multiple sides to detect at least one item that is characterized by an indication, such as, for example, a UPC code or SKU number sequence. .

From 902, the method 900 proceeds to a scan attempt initialization process 904 that sets the counter i to zero. The method 900 proceeds to 906 and increments i by one. If the indication is recognized at 908, the method 700 reenters at 708. Otherwise, a check is made at 910 to confirm that i is less than S ₁ , where S ₁ corresponds to an integer value set to the maximum number of scan attempts. If so, as the method 900 proceeds to 912, the item is recycled for rescan and the counter is incremented by 1 at 906. This attempt process is repeated until the positive scan result or the number of scan attempts is exceeded. If the threshold S ₁ is exceeded, the method proceeds to 914 and the item is transferred to the exception container. The method proceeds to 916 where an attempt to read the code with a manual scanner is attempted and / or data is manually entered by the operator to characterize the item.

10 is a process 1000 that is individually applicable to the transport of items by a delivery vehicle moveable along an array of sort locations, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique 700 of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments. Is a flowchart depicting the individual steps of the.

In some embodiments, method 1000 enters from step 710 of method 700. The method includes advancing the next available semi-autonomous vehicle to a location for receiving the item (step 1002). The item support surface of the vehicle is aligned with the item support surface of the item transport conveyor of the induction module (step 1004). The item conveying conveyor is operated at a predefined (eg default) feed rate (step 1006). If the transfer to the vehicle is confirmed (eg, by a sensor of the vehicle) (step 1008), the method 1000 sends a command to the vehicle identifying the classification location applicable to the item. The autonomous vehicle proceeds to the classification position (step 1012), and if no command is received by the vehicle to stop the movement of the vehicle (step 1014), the vehicle proceeds to the classification position until the arrival of the vehicle is detected. (Step 1018). Otherwise, the movement of the vehicle is stopped (step 1016) and the method returns to 1012 for further instruction. The additional instruction may include a direction for carrying the item to an alternative location that also has the group requiring the item. Alternatively, the vehicle may respond to the detection of an event affecting the classification destination by proceeding directly to the previously delivered "backup" classification destination. From 1018, the method determines whether the classification location is configured to accept the item (step 1020), and if not, a notification may be sent to the controller to request a new classification location that may be received in step 1024. Or (step 1020), or if such a location is not identified, the item may be sent to the reject container. Once the classification destination is ready, the item is transferred and the vehicle exits the method 1000, for example, entering step 726 of the process 700.

FIG. 11 is a process 1100 for characterization of one or more features of an item prior to classification, which may be performed as a subprocess of the technique 700 of FIG. 7 in accordance with one or more embodiments consistent with this disclosure. A flowchart depicting a sequence of applicable steps. The process 1100 may enter, for example, before, during or after the execution of block 706 of the process 700. From 706, the method 1100 enters 1102 where the item is metered. The method optionally proceeds to 1104 where a determination is made as to whether the item is within the expected range. If the item is not within the expected range, the method proceeds to 1106, where an alert is generated and an instruction is generated to stop the feed / transport conveyor. If the item is within the expected range, the method proceeds to 1108 where the metered item is transferred to the discharge end of the transfer conveyor and the availability of the item delivery mechanism (delivery vehicle) is confirmed at 1110. From 1110, the process proceeds to 1112, where a determination is made as to whether a feed rate correction is needed to prevent the item from overshooting the support surface of the corresponding delivery vehicle due to excess momentum. If the determination at 1112 is below a threshold for special handling, process 1100 proceeds to 1114 and a higher feed rate is maintained for the conveyor to handle more volume of items per unit time. However, if it is determined that the item exceeds the threshold, the feed rate is adjusted at 1116 by delaying the rate sufficiently to avoid overshoot conditions. From 1114 or 1116, the method 1100 proceeds to 1118, where the method 1100 confirms the transfer of the item to an available delivery vehicle. In one embodiment, process 1100 returns to method 700 at 708.

Returning to FIGS. 5A-6E, to prepare for receipt of an item, a vehicle, such as vehicle 500 of FIGS. 5A-5C, moves along the track toward the loading station in the loading column shown in FIG. 6C. When the vehicle 500 (FIG. 6C) moves to a location at the loading station, the home sensor detects the presence of the vehicle and transmits a signal to the central processor indicating that the vehicle is located at the loading station.

Once the vehicle is placed in the loading station, the input station carries the item onto the vehicle. When the item is transported onto the vehicle 500, the loading mechanism 510 on the vehicle loads the item onto the vehicle. Specifically, the input station carries the item in contact with the conveyor belt on the vehicle. The conveyor belt rotates toward the rear side of the vehicle, thereby driving the item to the rear of the vehicle.

The operation of the conveyor belt is controlled by the loading sensor. The front loading sensor detects the tip of the item when the item is loaded onto the vehicle. Once the front loading sensor detects the rear end of the item, the controller of the vehicle onboard determines that the item has been loaded into the vehicle and stops the conveyor motor. In addition, the onboard controller may control the operation of the conveyor in response to the signal received from the rear loading sensor. Specifically, when the rear loading sensor detects the tip of the item, the tip of the item is adjacent to the rear edge of the vehicle. To ensure that the item does not protrude from the rear edge of the vehicle, the controller may stop the conveyor once the rear loading sensor detects the tip of the item. However, if the rear loading sensor detects the leading edge of the item before the front loading sensor detects the trailing edge of the item, the controller indicates that there is a problem with the item (i.e. it is too long or two overlapping items onto the vehicle). Supplied). In such a case, the system may tag the item as reject and discharge the item to the reject container 625 that is placed behind the loading station. In this way, if an error occurs while loading an item onto the vehicle, the item may simply be ejected into the reject container and subsequent items may be loaded onto the vehicle.

After the item is loaded onto the vehicle, the vehicle moves away from the loading station. Specifically, once the onboard controller detects that the item has been correctly loaded onto the vehicle, the onboard controller sends a signal to start the drive motor. The drive motor rotates the axle, which rotates the gears on the wheels. The gear meshes with the drive surface of the vertical rail of the loading column to drive the vehicle upwards. In particular, the gear and drive surface operate in engagement as a rack and pinion mechanism that converts the rotational movement of the wheel into linear movement along the track.

Since the vehicle moves from the loading station onto the loading column, the destination for the vehicle does not need to be determined until the vehicle reaches the first gate along the upper rail 110-1. For example, if an automated system is used at the induction station to scan and determine the characteristics used to classify the item, determining relevant characteristics and / or communicating that information with the central controller to receive destination information. It may take some processing time. The time it takes to transport the item onto the vehicle and then the vehicle onto the loading column will typically be sufficient time to determine the relevant characteristics for the item. However, if the characteristic is not determined by the time the vehicle reaches the upper rail, the system may declare that the item is not eligible for classification and the vehicle may be directed to a reinduction station.

Once the item is eligible for classification, the central controller determines the appropriate container 606 for the item. Based on the location of the container relative to the item, a route for the vehicle is determined. Specifically, the central controller determines the route for the vehicle and delivers information to the vehicle about the container to which the item is to be delivered. The central controller then controls the gate along the track to direct the vehicle to the appropriate column. Once the vehicle reaches the appropriate column, the vehicle moves down the column to the appropriate container. The vehicle stops at an appropriate container 606 and the onboard controller sends an appropriate signal to the conveyor motor to drive the conveyor belt, which drives the item forward to discharge the item into the container. In particular, the top of the vehicle is aligned with the gap between the appropriate container and the lower edge of the container directly above the suitable container.

In this case, the orientation of the vehicle is substantially unchanged when the vehicle moves from moving horizontally (along the upper rail or lower rail) to moving vertically (down the column of one of the columns). Specifically, when the vehicle is traveling horizontally, the two connected front wheels cooperate with the upper horizontal rail 610-1 or the lower horizontal rail 610-2 of the front track and the rear connected two wheels. Wheels cooperate with a corresponding upper rail 610-1 or lower rail 610-2 of the rear track. As the vehicle passes through the gate and enters the next column, the two connected front wheels engage a pair of vertical legs on the front track, and the two connected rear wheels engage the corresponding vertical legs on the rear track. .

As the vehicle moves from a horizontal rail to a vertical column or from vertical to horizontal, the track allows all four connected wheels to be placed at the same height. In this way, when the vehicle moves along the track, it does not tilt or tilt even when the vehicle changes between horizontal and vertical movement.

Traffic control

Since the system includes a number of vehicles 500, the system controls the operation of the various vehicles to ensure that the vehicles do not collide with each other. In the discussion below, this is called traffic control. Exemplary methodologies for controlling the flow of traffic are described in US Pat. No. 7,861,844.

In this case, some of the columns may have two vertical rails independent of adjacent columns. For example, the loading column has two independent rails that are not shared with adjacent columns. Thus, the vehicle can move over the loading column, regardless of the vehicle position of the column next to the loading column. Moreover, it may be desirable to configure the column next to the loading column so that the column next to the loading column also has two independent vertical rails. In this way, the vehicle can move more freely above the loading column and below the adjacent column.

In the foregoing discussion, the classification of items has been described in relation to an array of containers disposed in front of the sorting station 600. However, as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the number of containers in the system can be doubled by attaching a rear array of containers to the back side of the sorting station. In this way, the vehicle can deliver the item to the container on the front side of the sorting station by moving to the container and then rotating the conveyor on the vehicle forward to discharge the article into the container in front of it. In this way, the vehicle can deliver the item to the container on the rear side of the sorting station by moving to the container and then rotating the conveyor on the vehicle back to eject the article into the container at the rear. In addition, sorting station 600 is modular and can be easily extended as needed by simply attaching additional sections to the left end of the sorting station.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes or modifications may be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept of the invention. For example, in the foregoing discussion, the system is described as a series of vehicles guided by the track. However, it should be understood that the system does not need to include a track. For example, the vehicle may travel along the ground instead of along the track. The vehicle may be guided along the ground by one or more sensors and / or controllers. Optionally, the vehicle may be guided in response to a signal from another vehicle and / or a central controller, such as a computer that monitors each vehicle and controls the movement of the vehicle to prevent the vehicles from colliding with each other. In addition, the central controller may provide a signal for guiding each vehicle along a path to a storage location or transport location.

In addition to a system in which a vehicle moves along the ground without a track, the system may incorporate a guidance assembly that includes one or more rails or other physical guides that contact a mechanism on the vehicle for guiding the vehicle along a path. . For example, each vehicle may include one or more contact elements, such as wheels, rollers, guide tabs, pins, or other elements that may engage the guide assembly. The guide assembly may be a linear element such as a straight rail or it may be a curved element. The guide assembly may be bent in the horizontal plane such that the rail stays in a plane or the guide may be bent vertically so that the rail is in a single plane. The guide assembly may include a plurality of guides or rails vertically spaced apart from one another such that the vehicle may move horizontally at a plurality of vertical levels. The guide may also include an elevator for moving the vehicle between vertically spaced rails.

As can be seen from the above, the aforementioned systems may be incorporated into various systems for guiding the vehicle along the open area by using a physical guide mechanism or by indicating a path for guiding the vehicle to a storage position or a transfer position. have. As discussed above, the movement of each vehicle may be controlled in response to the determination of one or more physical characteristics of the item carried by each vehicle, respectively.

Embodiments of the invention may be implemented as a method, apparatus, electronic device, and / or computer program product. Thus, aspects of the invention may be implemented in hardware and / or in software (including firmware, resident software, microcode, and the like), which are commonly referred to herein as "circuits" or "modules". It may be. Moreover, an embodiment of the present invention is a computer usable storage medium or computer readable medium having computer usable program code or computer readable program code embodied in a medium for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system. It may take the form of a computer program product on a possible storage medium. In the context of the present application, a computer usable medium or computer readable medium can be any computer that can contain, store, deliver, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. It may be a medium. These computer program instructions may also be stored in computer usable memory or computer readable memory that may direct the computer or other programmable data processing device to function in a particular manner, and as a result, computer usable memory or computer The instructions stored in the readable memory will produce an article of manufacture that includes instructions that implement the functionality specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram block or block diagram blocks.

The computer usable medium or computer readable medium may be, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor system, apparatus or device, for example. More specific examples (list) of computer-readable media include the following: hard disks, optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, electrical connections with one or more wires, portable computer diskettes, random access memory (RAM) Read-only memory (ROM), erasable and programmable read-only memory; EPROM or Flash memory, optical fiber, and compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM).

Computer program code for performing the operations of embodiments of the present invention may be written in an object-oriented programming language such as Java.RTM, Smalltalk or C ++, and the like. However, computer program code for performing the operations of embodiments of the present invention may also be written in conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language and / or any other low level assembler language. have. The functionality of any or all of the program modules may also be implemented using discrete hardware components, one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), or programmed digital signal processors or microcontrollers. Will be further appreciated.

The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments of the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. Embodiments have been selected and described in order to best explain the principles of the present disclosure and their practical applications, whereby various modifications may be made by others skilled in the art to suit the invention and the particular uses contemplated. It is possible to make the best use of the various embodiments with the following.

12 is a detailed block diagram of a computer system, in accordance with one or more embodiments, that may be utilized in various embodiments of the present invention to implement a computer and / or display device, in accordance with one or more embodiments.

Various embodiments of methods and apparatus for organizing, improving, and presenting message content incorporating one or more media files may be executed on one or more computer systems that may interact with various other devices, as described herein. One such computer system is the computer system 1200 illustrated by FIG. 12, which may implement the elements or functionality illustrated in FIGS. 1-11 in various embodiments. In various embodiments, computer system 1200 may be configured to implement the methods described above. Computer system 1200 may be used to implement any other system, device, element, functionality, or method of the embodiments described above. In the illustrated embodiment, computer system 1200 includes method 700 (FIG. 7), method 800 (FIG. 8), method 900 (FIG. 9), method 1000 (FIG. 10), and / Alternatively, the method 1100 (FIG. 11) may be configured to implement the processor executable program instructions 1222 (eg, program instructions executable by the processor (s) 1210) of various embodiments.

In the illustrated embodiment, computer system 1200 includes one or more processors 1210a-1210n coupled to system memory 1220 via an input / output (I / O) interface 1230. . Computer system 1200 may include a network interface 1240 coupled to I / O interface 1230, and one or more inputs / such as cursor control device 1260, keyboard 1270, and display (s) 1280. It further includes an output device 1250. In various embodiments, any of the components may be utilized by the system to receive the user input described above. In various embodiments, a user interface may be generated and displayed on display 1280. In some cases, embodiments may be implemented using a single instance of computer system 1200, while in other embodiments, multiple nodes, or multiple such systems, that make up computer system 1200 may vary. It is contemplated that it may be configured to host different portions or instances of an embodiment. For example, in one embodiment, some elements may be implemented through one or more nodes of computer system 1200 that are distinct from the nodes of an element that implements other elements. In another example, multiple nodes may implement computer system 1200 in a distributed fashion.

In different embodiments, computer system 1200 may be a personal computer system, desktop computer, laptop, notebook, or netbook computer, mainframe computer system, handheld computer, workstation, network computer, application server, storage device, peripheral device. The device may be any of various types of devices, including but not limited to switches, modems, routers, or generally any type of computing device or electronic device.

In various embodiments, computer system 1200 may be a uniprocessor system including one processor 1210, or several (eg, two, four, eight, or other suitable numbers). It may be a multiprocessor system including a processor 1210. Processor 1210 may be any suitable processor capable of executing instructions. For example, in various embodiments, the processor 1210 may be a general purpose processor or an embedded processor that implements any of a variety of instruction set architectures (ISAs). In a multiprocessor system, each processor 1210 may generally implement the same ISA, but is not necessarily so.

System memory 1220 may be configured to store program instructions 1222 and / or data 1224 accessible by processor 1210. In various embodiments, system memory 1220 may include static random access memory (SRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), nonvolatile / flash type memory, or any other type of memory. It may be implemented using any suitable memory technology such as. In the illustrated embodiment, program instructions and data that implement any of the elements of the above described embodiments may be stored in system memory 1220. In other embodiments, program instructions and / or data may be received, transmitted, or stored on different types of computer accessible media or system memory 1220 or similar media separate from computer system 1200.

In one embodiment, I / O interface 1230 is within a device, including processor 1210, system memory 1220, and network interface 1240 or other peripheral interface, such as input / output device 1250. It may be configured to coordinate I / O traffic between any peripheral device. In some embodiments, I / O interface 1230 is suitable for use by data components from one component (eg, system memory 1220) by another component (eg, processor 1210). In order to convert to a format, any necessary protocol, timing or other data conversion may be performed. In some embodiments, I / O interface 1230 can be of various types, such as, for example, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus standard or a variant of Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard. It may also include support for devices that are connected through the peripheral's bus. In some embodiments, the functionality of I / O interface 1230 may be divided into two or more separate components, such as, for example, a north bridge and a south bridge. In addition, in some embodiments, some or all of the functionality of I / O interface 1230, such as the interface to system memory 920, may be directly integrated into processor 1210.

Network interface 1240 is or may be used between computer system 1200 and one or more display devices (not shown), or other devices attached to a network (eg, network 1290), such as one or more external systems. It may be configured to allow data to be exchanged between nodes of the computer system 1200. In various embodiments, network 1290 may be a local area network (LAN) (eg, Ethernet or enterprise network), wide area network (WAN) (eg, the Internet), wireless data network. Or one or more networks, including but not limited to, some other electronic data network, or some combination thereof. In various embodiments, network interface 1240 communicates via a wired or wireless general data network, such as any suitable type of Ethernet network, such as via a telecommunication / telephone network such as an analog voice network or a digital fiber communication network. Communications, communications over storage area networks such as Fiber Channel SANs, or any other suitable type of network and / or protocol may be supported.

Input / output device 1250 may, in some embodiments, input data by one or more communication terminals, keyboards, keypads, touchpads, scanning devices, voice recognition devices or optical recognition devices, or one or more computer systems 1200, or It may include any other device suitable for access. Multiple input / output devices 1250 may exist in computer system 900 or may be distributed to various nodes of computer system 1200. In some embodiments, similar input / output devices may be separate from computer system 1200 and may be connected with one or more nodes of computer system 1200 via a wired or wireless connection, such as via network interface 1240. It can also interact.

In some embodiments, the illustrated computer system may implement any of the methods described above, such as the method illustrated by the flowcharts of FIGS. 7-11. In other embodiments, different elements and data may be included.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that computer system 1200 is merely exemplary and is not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments. In particular, computer systems and devices may include any combination of hardware or software capable of performing the presented functions of various embodiments, including computers, network devices, and the like. Computer system 1200 may also be connected to other devices not illustrated, or instead, operate as a standalone system. In addition, the functionality provided by the illustrated components may be combined in fewer components or distributed in additional components in some embodiments. Similarly, in some embodiments, the functionality of some of the illustrated components may not be provided and / or other additional functionality may be available.

Those skilled in the art are also illustrated as being stored in memory or storage while various items are in use, but these items or portions of them may be moved between memory and other storage devices for memory management and data integrity purposes. It will be appreciated. Alternatively, in other embodiments, some or all of the software components may be executed in memory on another device and may communicate with the illustrated computer system via intercomputer communication. Some or all of the system components or data structures may also be stored (eg, as instructions or structured data) on a portable article for which various examples thereof are to be read by the computer-accessible media described above or a suitable drive. In some embodiments, instructions stored on a computer-accessible medium separate from computer system 1200 may be a transmission medium or transmission signal, such as an electrical signal, an electromagnetic signal transmitted via a communication medium such as a network and / or a wireless link. The signal may be transmitted to the computer system 1200 via a signal or a digital signal. Various embodiments may further include receiving, transmitting or storing instructions and / or data implemented in accordance with the foregoing description on a computer-accessible medium or via a communication medium. Generally, computer-accessible media can be any of the following either storage media or memory media, such as magnetic or optical media, such as disks or DVD / CD-ROMs, volatile or nonvolatile media such as RAM (e.g., SDRAM, DDR, RDRAM, SRAM, and the like), ROM, and the like.

The methods described herein may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination thereof in various embodiments. In addition, the order of the methods may be changed, and various elements may be added, rearranged, combined, omitted, or otherwise modified. All examples described herein are presented in a non-limiting manner. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, various modifications and changes may be made to the benefit of the present disclosure. Implementations in accordance with embodiments have been described in the context of specific embodiments. These embodiments are intended to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Many variations, modifications, additions and improvements are possible. Thus, multiple instances may be provided for components described herein as a single instance. The boundaries between the various components, operations, and data repositories are somewhat arbitrary, and specific operations are illustrated in the context of certain example configurations. Other assignments of functionality are envisioned and may fall within the scope of the following claims. Finally, structures and functionality presented as separate components in example configurations may be implemented as combined structures or components. Such variations, modifications, additions and improvements and other variations, modifications, additions and improvements may fall within the scope of the embodiments as defined in the following claims.

While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the invention, other additional embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the following claims.

Claims (15)

A method of classifying items into a dynamically reconfigurable sort array structure (DRSAS) that defines a column of sort destinations, the method comprising:
Executing, by the processor of the controller, instructions stored in memory to activate a visual alert aligned with the first sorted destination of the DRSAS when a first item to be manually transported is detected;
Executing, by the processor, instructions stored in a memory to turn off the visual alert after the first item has been manually transferred to the first sorted destination;
Receiving, on a delivery vehicle, a second item to be automatically delivered to the first sorted destination;
In response to a command from the controller, received at the delivery vehicle, advancing the delivery vehicle along the route to the first classification destination;
Transferring the second item from the delivery vehicle to the first sorted destination
Comprising a method of classifying items. The method of claim 1,
Operating at least one sensor of the delivery vehicle to detect that the first classification destination cannot accommodate the second item
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method of claim 2,
Sending a notification from the delivery vehicle to the controller that the first classification destination cannot accept the second item
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Operating a scanner to obtain an identifying indicium from at least one surface of the first item or the second item
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method of claim 4, wherein
Transmitting, from the scanner to the controller, data indicative of an identification indication associated with the first item.
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method of claim 4, wherein
Transmitting data representing the identification mark associated with the first item from the scanner to a controller of a warehouse management system
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method according to claim 5 or 6,
And the instructions stored in memory for activating the visual alert are executed by the processor based on data transmitted from the scanner. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 7,
Transmitting, from the scanner, data indicative of confirmation that the first item has been transferred to the first sorted destination.
Wherein the instructions stored in memory for turning off the visual alert are executed by the processor based on data transmitted from the scanner. A method of classifying items using a dynamically reconfigurable classification array system,
The sorting array system comprises a plurality of destination areas, a plurality of delivery vehicles, and an event annunciation system, which are generally arranged in a series of vertically extending columns.
Transferring, on a delivery vehicle, an item to be delivered to a first destination area of the plurality of destination areas;
Driving the delivery vehicle along the route to the first destination area;
Initiating ejection of the item to the first destination area;
Operating the event notification system to provide a first visual alert upon detection of an item to be manually delivered to a second destination area of the plurality of destination areas;
Upon detection of manual delivery of the item to the second destination, operating the event notification system to discontinue the first visible alert or provide a second visible alert that is visually distinguishable from the first visible alert. Doing at least one of the
Comprising a method of classifying items. The method of claim 9,
Operating a sensor of a material handling system to confirm the release of the item to the first destination area;
Further comprising, the method of classifying items. The method of claim 9 or 10,
And wherein the second visible alert is provided when the last item needed to complete grouping of items in the destination area has been transferred. An article handling system for classifying a plurality of items into one or more groups of items,
A plurality of destination regions generally arranged in a series of vertically extending columns;
A plurality of visible indicators, wherein at least one of the plurality of visible indicators is adjacent to a corresponding destination area of the plurality of destination areas;
As a plurality of delivery vehicles, each delivery vehicle is dimensioned and arranged to receive each item of the plurality of items, and is operable to convey the received item to any one of the plurality of destination areas, Delivery vehicle
A power source for driving the delivery vehicle, and
Transfer mechanism that operates to transfer the accepted item to the selected destination area
A plurality of delivery vehicles comprising a;
A controller comprising a processor for executing instructions stored in a memory, wherein the instructions include:
For activating a first visible indicator of the plurality of visible indicators when a first item to be manually transported to a first destination area is detected,
To deactivate the first visible indicator of the plurality of visible indicators when confirmation of manual transfer of the first item is detected, and
The controller to activate a second visible indicator adjacent to the first destination area when the complete group of items has accumulated in the first destination area.
Comprising an article handling system. The method of claim 12,
And the memory further comprises instructions executable by the processor to deactivate the second visible indicator when the complete group of items has been removed from the first destination area. The method of claim 13,
And the memory further comprises instructions executable by the processor for controlling movement and operation of each delivery vehicle. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14,
The plurality of destination areas are generally arranged in a series of first columns extending vertically and in a series of second columns extending vertically, the system further comprising a track for guiding the delivery vehicle to the destination area. And the track is disposed between the series of first columns and the series of second columns so that a delivery vehicle can move vertically between the series of first columns and the series of second columns, When stopped at a point along this track, the transfer mechanism may move the item forward between the delivery vehicle and a destination area in the series of first columns, the transfer mechanism being configured to transfer the vehicle and the delivery vehicle. The item handling system of claim 1, wherein the item can be moved backwards between destination areas in the second series of columns.

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